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06/03/2013

Fire sprinkler battle highlights massive house fire featured in Faces of Fire

CBS-DC recently ran a story about the raging home fire sprinkler debate between the contractors who build the homes and firefighters who say they (new homes) are akin to living in a matchbox.

Documenting the “extensive urban sprawl” where “homes are being constructed at a blinding pace to keep up with the increasing number of people moving into the D.C. region,” the report highlights the threats of lightweight construction as a major safety hazard, and features a massive 2008 fire on Meadowood Court in Loudon County “as a prime example of the dangers lurking behind the walls of these homes.”

This fire was featured in one of our Faces of Fire stories, told by the fire’s commander Chief W. Keith Brower, Jr. “When the mayday was called, I was approximately seven to eight miles out, and my heart stopped,” Brower says. “It literally froze me. It was chilling.”

A video released by Loudon County documents the fire minute by minute. Three minutes after firefighters arrived, Capt. Micah Kiger led his men into the burning home and up the stairs to the fire. Just three minutes later, a flashover occurred. This fire changed their lives forever. “(It) actually trapped us,” said Kiger. “It was basically your worst nightmare hearing the other people scream that were burning up.”